April 24, 2006 Visit to Catherine's Social Welfare Institute
Today we ventured out for the 1.5 hour drive to visit the SWI of 7 of the 8 babies in our group. We had one lone baby that was from another SWI and they went on their own with a guide. The ride was long and often very quiet. I think many of us were contemplating the visit ahead. The area quickly became quite rural. Livestock on the side of the road. Fields of rice. Very green and lush. Not like being in Nanchang at all. We got to the SWI and disembarked the bus. The SWI is a 4 or 5 story building. Also in the "complex" are 2 buildings that house the older, indigent people of the area. We were escorted to the third floor office of the director. He welcomed us heartily. They had bottled water, fans, and fruit waiting upon us. We rested on couches, fed and changed the babies and began our "tour".
They took us into a "baby room". Nannies with infants in their laps sat upon the floor. Cartoons played from the small television sent in the room. One infant for strapped to a potty chair. Others were held by their caregivers. It was clean, neat and relatively bright. A row of cribs along the wall were almost too much to fathom. Empty except for plywood on the bottom. We all wondered if they children napped in those. But no one asked.
We then went on a walking tour of the floor. We got to see the room that Catherine and 2 of her friends slept in with their Nanny. We had to take it through the glass windows so that is why it is a bit hazy. They still had the little clothes the girls wore folded on a bookshelf in the room. But the room was empty. The Nanny that cared for our daughter and her pals had gone back to her family until she was needed again. From what we know, Catherine only spent 8 weeks in the SWI, coming when we received our referral. She was in foster care prior to that. While at the SWI, the nannies who were present kept their distance. Later we learned that this was at the instruction of the director.
We took a picture with the director and he wrote a note to Catherine in her book that we had brought. We will have to get in translated for her. We stayed for about an hour and departed. The picture of James, Catherine and I is out the garden area of the SWI.
To say the least it was a very moving experience. Not one that any of us "wanted" to have but one that we all felt we "needed" to have. It is a part of our daughter's history and we wouldn't have missed it for the world. After we left we went to a nearby village. One perhaps, similar to Catherine's. The houses were so very, very tiny. The doorway too small for the average man or woman to walk in upright. It was a very humbling experience. We were welcomed into people's homes. Touched for good luck. Blessed to be loving these children. Our journey ended by going by several of the "finding" spots for the children. We could not go to Catherine's as it was an hour in the opposite direction of Nanchang. To say the least, we were disappointed. But grateful for the opportunity to see her village and meet these people.
